Training Report 3

22 weeks to the Lausanne Marathon.
20 weeks to the Phedippidations World Half Marathon Challenge (at Henley on Thames)
16 weeks to the Robin Hood Nottingham Half Marathon.

Yes there are some more goals on the list now. I hope that this blog helps me stick to them as the lack of sunday runs in my weekend work season means I can't rely on the inspiration of my two trusted running partners Paul (Stockport Shuffler) MacDowell and Trevor ('wor Trev) White. Together we ran London together twice, as well as the entire length of the Ridgeway, Grand Union Canal and Thames Path National trails.

This was another week when I missed a day's intended running, self-destructing on my plan to hit the 30 mile mark for a sunday to saturday week. But I gained one back on sunday when my weekend event got curtailed. A nice lonely road run of 6.5 miles through the surrounding villages - in Noah's Ark friendly conditions!

When I finished last week's report I was off on an intended 12 miler along the ridgeway. Well I did it, loved it, avoided the field with the bull in it and finished in pretty good shape if completely knackered. I've decided to take a half-litre sports drink along with me for the ride on my longer runs - something I didn't bother with in the past. The aim is to aid recovery and alos imitate the way I expect to run a marathon. This and the mp3 player I would have scoffed at 20 years ago. What would Alf Tupper have thought?

I am truly fortunate to have the Ridgeway and the Chiltern hills so close to where I live. Although I have to drive to a start point, the reward is miles of challenging offroad terrain (mainly rolling hills in and out of patches of woodland and pasture). It is amazingly deserted particularly on a weekday and thr trail is invariably obvious with many alternatives available. This spring it is dry though and this means the soft trails that you may expect in May after a typically wet April and March are now rutted and uneven. I found this quite tiring last wednesday and my ankles and feet certainly got a good two hour work out.

Eric Clapton at the Albert Hall was just awesome, but I have to admit to feeling my aching legs as I climb the stairs to our seats in the circle. eric looks like he keeps himself fit - do you think he's a runner?

Today's 5.5 mile mixed terrain run confirmed that the mystery thigh twinge of last night was a bit of a disappearing running injury. A whinge not a twinge!

Another week of running around work commitments beckons. Let's see if I can hit that 30 miles now?

Thanks to Steve Runner again. Your latest wonderful podcast accompanied sunday's six and a half miler in the rain. I think I'll christen that route my Phedippidations 10k Round! I don't know if the rest of us are kind hearted, but you, my friend have enough of that for most of us anyway.